Many wireless communication networks include a user plane (also referred to as a data plane) for handling packet data network (PDN) connections with a user equipment (UE). When the UE requests a PDN connection, the request is routed through a mobility management entity (MME), a serving gateway (SGW), and a packet data network gateway (PGW). However, the SGW and/or PGW may become overloaded due to congestion caused by other UEs and/or other PDN connections. In this case, the request may be rejected by the PGW, and a notification is routed back to the UE that the PDN connection cannot be established.